Slow progress on equal pay rules leaves Cyprus employees in uncertainty

Cyprus remains among the EU countries where the final implementation of new pay transparency rules is unresolved, according to a report from compensation and salary benchmarking platform TalentUp. TalentUp said its October 2026 review of the European Union Pay Transparency Directive showed that Cyprus had prepared draft legislation before the June 2026 deadline, but the parliamentary process was disrupted by the dissolution of Parliament in April and the subsequent legislative elections. As a result, the final status and timetable for transposing the directive into Cyprus law remain uncertain. The EU directive is intended to help close gender pay gaps by strengthening equal pay for equal work and work of equal value between women and men. It introduces new requirements covering pay transparency, reporting and workers’ rights and applies to employers in both the public and private sectors across the European Union. TalentUp said the June 2026 deadline for member states to implement the directive had passed, but countries were progressing at markedly different speeds. Six member states had transposed the directive or partially implemented it, with Slovakia, Italy, Lithuania, Malta and Greece having rules in force and Estonia having implemented part of the requirements. Slovakia, for example, required pay structures to be in place by July 31, while Italy requires salary ranges to be included in job advertisements. Lithuania, meanwhile, has applied its rules to employers of all sizes. A further 13 member states had draft legislation under consideration, according to TalentUp, while seven had barely begun the process and one, Sweden, had asked the EU to renegotiate the directive. TalentUp said the varying progress meant that employers operating across several EU countries were facing 27 different national realities despite working from the same EU directive. For Cyprus, the draft legislation would introduce a number of changes to how employers recruit, set salaries and provide information to employees. Job applicants would have to receive the initial salary or salary range before an interview, while employers would be prohibited from asking candidates about their previous or current salary. The proposed framework would also require employers to use objective and gender-neutral criteria when determining pay and career progression. During employment, workers would have the right to request information about their own pay and the average pay of employees carrying out comparable work, with the figures broken down by sex. Employers would have to respond to such requests within two months, while workers would also have to be reminded of their rights on an annual basis. The directive introduces reporting requirements based on the size of an employer. Under the EU timetable, reporting would begin in 2027 for companies employing 150 or more people, while employers with between 100 and 149 employees would come under reporting requirements from 2031. TalentUp said the wider requirements relating to transparency before hiring, access to pay information and non-discrimination would apply on an ongoing basis. The rules also include a mechanism for addressing unexplained gender pay differences. Where an unjustified gender pay gap of 5 per cent or more exists within a particular category of workers and is not corrected within six months, employers would have to carry out a joint pay assessment and take corrective action. TalentUp said the financial risks associated with non-compliance could include compensation claims without a fixed upper limit for discrimination, fines and possible exclusion from public contracts. The platform also highlighted the potential impact on employers’ reputations and ability to retain staff, arguing that greater transparency could strengthen employee trust, reduce turnover and improve employer reputation. For Cyprus, TalentUp said the country stood out because it had already produced detailed draft legislation before the EU deadline. However, the dissolution of Parliament in April 2026 and the subsequent elections interrupted the legislative process, leaving the final timetable for implementation unclear. The platform said Cyprus employers would therefore need to monitor the progress of the legislation while preparing for the requirements set out in the EU directive. Across the EU, TalentUp said Spain’s proposed rules would extend pay reporting to companies with 50 or more employees, while France was proposing measures going beyond the EU minimum requirements. The Netherlands, meanwhile, was seeking to delay reporting requirements until 2028. Germany, Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Ireland, Luxembourg and Slovenia had still not produced final legislation, according to the October update. Sweden had gone further by asking the EU to renegotiate the directive. TalentUp said the differing national approaches meant that employers operating in more than one EU country could face different rules, deadlines and reporting requirements depending on where their staff were based. The platform’s updated guide is intended to provide employers with a country-by-country overview of the rules and their implementation status as of October 2026. TalentUp said proactive preparation could help companies reduce the risk of disputes and regulatory action as national legislation catches up with the EU directive.